In computer networking, network administrators are tasked with managing, prioritizing, controlling, and optimizing the flow of network traffic. This can include coordinating Internet bandwidth, allocating resources, and minimizing congestion, latency, and packet loss. Accordingly, resource allocation and traffic shaping have become increasingly prominent in the field of network management. In some scenarios, virtualized deployment models can operate to consolidate virtual machines, where unused hardware is ramped down to save power. Allocating new resources is straightforward; however, optimal resource allocation should be executed prior to surging loads, which can overwhelm an architecture. The ability to properly manage resources and, further, to efficiently address content requests presents a significant challenge to system designers, component manufacturers, service providers, and network administrators alike.